ONONDAGA COUNTY – Having waited nearly two years to win a game, the Fayetteville-Manlius football team required just six days to get the next one.
The Hornets followed up its tense Oct. 4 win over Baldwinsville by taking on Henninger last Thursday night and having a far less stressful affair, pulling away to beat the Black Knights 42-16.
All through the first half F-M’s defense was sharp and consistent, never letting Henninger get too far while giving the offense extra possessions, which it utilized to grab a 20-0 lead.
Colin Clark’s five-yard scoring run and an extra point was the only scoring in the first quarter. It accelerated before halftime as Clark scored again from six yards out and Jack Hearn took off 50 yards for a touchdown.
Remarkably, Clark replicated his game-turning moment against B’ville by again receiving the second-half kickoff and again picking up blocks while taking it all the way back for six points, the TD covering 75 yards.
As if that wasn’t enough, Clark caught a 22-yard scoring pass from Hearn, who completed six of nine passes for 109 yards and added 79 rushing yards on just five carries. Clark ran for 83 yards on 11 carries.
But the game’s best moment came near the end. With the win secure, F-M allowed Henninger to score a TD and then, after the ensuing kickoff Noah Dickinson, an F-M player with Down’s Syndrome, got a chance to go on the field and ran 75 yards to the end zone, much to the delight of players, fans and coaches on both teams.
Christian Brothers Academy had a far longer win streak going – 18 in a row, to be precise – and it ran to 19 last Thursday when, in its own game against Baldwinsville at Pelcher-Arcaro Stadium, the Brothers cruised to a 49-7 victory.
It proved yet another showcase for CBA’s vaunted defense, which did not allow a point until the starters were on the bench in the fourth quarter and limited B’ville to 122 total yards.
Austin Ariola began a 21-point first quarter by scoring from seven yards out, followed by consecutive drives ended by Brayden Smith throwing TD passes of 20 and 10 yards to Darien Williams.
Quentin Lewis, whose score on a punt return turned the Oct. 4 game at Liverpool around, scored twice in the second period on consecutive six-yard runs, which made it 35-0 by halftime. Smith added a third-quarter TD on a two-yard sneak
Jamesville-DeWitt saw its 18-6 victory over Onondaga last Thursday night overshadowed by an incident where penalties and taunting led the officials to clear the field and end the game with 18 seconds left.
Anthony Guidone had just picked up a first down, and when he celebrated several OCS players on the sidelines, objecting to it, ran out on the field. Nobody fought, but the teams were separated and ultimately were sent off.
Before this, J-D seized control with Carson Kim’s 52-yard TD pass to Ryan Walker in the opening minutes. Kim added a six-yard scoring run to answer a Tigers score and put the Rams up 13-6 at halftime.
Defenses controlled most of the second half, but Carter Phaneuf’s seven-yard TD run gave J-D some insurance as Kim and Guidone combined to throw 162 yards on 12-of-19 attempts.
Bryce Wheeler paced the Rams’ defense, earning nine tackles. Kim, Phaneuf, Kevin Vigneault and Braeden Hennessey had seven tackles apiece, with Bryce Dadey and Joe Felasco both earning six tackles and Felasco adding an interception.
Bishop Grimes continued to impress in eight-man football, routing Utica Notre Dame 60-12 on Friday to improve its overall record to 4-1.
Avery Pankow threw a pair of 50-yard TD passes for the Cobras, one to Dario Nicotra and the other to Gary Carter. Kamari McMullin’s pair of runs amounted to 60 yards and a TD as Pankow, Demetrius Williams and Gianni Carello all scored on runs, too.
Nictotra led the Grimes defense with 11 tackles, Frank Von Hassel adding nine tackles. Williams and David Shaw had eight tackles apiece as Darrell Peterson got seven tackles. Carello earned an interception, with Nicotra and Carter each recovering fumbles.
Only East Syracuse Minoa proved unable to get a win, falling 48-6 to Central Square as the Spartans’ lone touchdown came in a decisive second quarter where the Redhawks scored 22 points and then earned a second-half shutout.
